Finding Our Niche in Making a Difference in The World

There is an age old question about what the meaning of life is. Many people come to ponder the meaning of life and have even gone so far as to go somewhere to get away from it all and “find” themselves in pursuit of that answer. Sorry to break it to you, though, but I am not offering that in this article. That is still for you to find. However, I do have some thoughts regarding the subject that have recently come to mind and were inspired by recent events in my life.

We often see that this world has so many problems and we can sometimes be left wondering, how can we, as individuals, really make a significant difference? The truth is that it is not something you really have to put a lot of thought into. It is something you can sometimes stumble on to. If you keep your mind open to possibilities, then maybe it will be easier for you to find.

I have stumbled upon an opportunity to positively affect the lives of a number of people I have never even met, in what I thought was one of the most unlikely of places. That place was on Facebook. I met Pastor J. Prabhudas, who has a ministry in India. His ministry feeds children, the elderly and provides an education to the poor.

After meeting him and being told of his work in India, I decided to send what I thought was just a minor contribution to his ministry. I was surprised to learn, however, that the contribution I made was used to provide food and distribute some financial assistance to 20 elderly people. Think about it. What I thought was no big deal affected the lives of 20 people. Shows what I know.

So the kind pastor sends me an e-mail thanking me and with it is a picture attached to it. It is the picture displayed with this article. It is a photo of people basically thanking me with a level of gratitude I had not expected. I have to say that not only was I surprised, but began to feel a variety of emotions regarding it.

One thought that came to mind was the feeling that I was not deserving of such gratitude because my contribution, in my eyes, was not that great. The other feeling was the feeling of great happiness for having been able to help 20 people on the other side of the world that I have never even met. But both emotions left me with one conclusion: I want to help them even more now.

So maybe the meaning of my life is to continue to help others in this manner. Maybe that is my niche that I have found for myself in making a difference in the world. Or maybe it is just one part of a greater niche I will carve out for myself in the long run. Never-the-less, it is my little place in the world.

My point is that even when you think you aren’t helping that much, you are really helping to a greater degree than you might think. Maybe you think that your small contribution would not make enough of a difference. Let me be the first to tell you from my own experience that you are wrong. Am I telling you this out of feelings of moral superiority? The answer is no. I am telling you as one who thought the same way you might be thinking right now. I thought that way just one day ago. What a difference a day makes.

I have also agreed to create a website for the ministry. Hopefully, it will draw in other people who will feel compelled to contribute as well. That should help to make an even bigger difference. I will do what I can and, in time, my contributions may really end up being something significant. You never know.

So if this article gets you to think about things in a way that will make you more likely to find that niche for yourself in the area of making a difference in the world, then it will have served its intended purpose. I wish you well in that pursuit. Good luck.